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Rabat – Algeria’s regime celebrated Zellige, a type of mosaic tilework, in an exhibition amid an ongoing legal dispute with Morocco, which argued that Algeria’s use of the material constitutes an appropriation of Moroccan culture.
On Sunday, Algeria’s International Exhibition of Real Estate, Building, and Public Works (Batiwest), featured Zellige, which was claimed as part of “Algerian heritage” amid an ongoing backlash.
The exhibition’s Zellige stand included mosaic tilework identical to the one printed in Adidas’ controversial new sportswear collection.
Wali (governor) of Oran Said Sayoud expressed satisfaction with the display of Zellige and claimed that this type of mosaic has been existing in his country for hundreds of years.
The statement came amid a legal suit from Morocco against Adidas. In September, the sportswear company issued a new jersey for the Algerian national club, claiming that the collection was inspired by the “architectural design of the iconic El Mechouar palace in Tlemcen.”
The Oran governor along with the producer of the Zellige debuted at the exhibition echoed the same statement, claiming that the Zellige on Adidas’ collection was inspired by “Algeria’s heritage.”
“It’s our Zellige. It has been for hundreds of years,” the Algerian Zellige craftsman told the press.
The wali added to the producer’s statement, claiming that he was “surprised to see the producer presenting the same patterns as those on the training shirts of the Algerian national team.”
“When it was first produced, nobody cared, or complained about it, but when it was printed on the national team’s jerseys this irritated others,” the governor said, claiming that Algeria “respects its heritage and that of others.”
“But it [Zellige] is our heritage that we will not give up,” he continued. “It is our right to put it on our jerseys, our blankets, or the fronts of our buildings and no one has the right to dispute it.”
Morocco responded to Adidas’ controversial new collection by instructing Morocco’s Lawyers club to file a complaint against the German sportswear giant for cultural appropriation of Moroccan heritage.
Morocco’s Ministry of Culture also announced the official patenting of Zellige of Fez by the World Intellectual Property Organization.
“The Zellige industry dates back to the tenth century AD, when it flourished during the Marinid era [in the 13th to 15th century] in the honorable Kingdom before moving to neighboring tribes during the following centuries,” Morocco’s ministry said.
